Fuel thieves left baffled in DDB Sydney’s new Skoda EV ad
'Cars, not spaceships': DDB Sydney's campaign for new Skoda EVs
DDB Sydney has launched a new campaign for Škoda, featuring a pair of hapless thieves who attempt to siphon fuel from the carmaker’s latest electric vehicle.
The ‘Surprisingly’ campaign sees the bumbling duo creep up to a car parked overnight in a suburban driveway, jerrycan in hand, ready to steal petrol, only to be left baffled and empty-handed when they discover there’s no petrol to steal.
The spot forms part of Skoda’s push around its growing EV line-up, led by the Enyaq and upcoming Elroq models, as the Volkswagen-owned brand aims to establish its place in Australia’s expanding electric vehicle market.
DDB Sydney has held the Volkswagen Group Australia account, which includes Skoda and Volkswagen, for more than 20 years.
Speaking to Mumbrella, DDB Sydney creative director Steve Hey said the concept emerged from the observation that many electric vehicles still feel a little other-worldly.
“The thinking came from looking at the state of the market after the first wave of EVs launched,” Hey said. “Those early models felt very futuristic — full of touchscreens and voice activation — almost more like spaceships than cars.
“Now we’re in the second wave of EVs, and we’re seeing that people still want that analogue, human-like experience when they’re driving.
The video also notably shows the EV not plugged in overnight — a deliberate choice for two reasons, according to Hey.
“From a creative lens, it was about not giving the game away too early,” he explained. “But it also ties into a broader message from Škoda, that EVs have evolved a lot, and their range has advanced.
“We wanted to show that this EV is more flexible, and you don’t need to have it plugged in all the time anymore.”
The idea connects to the brand’s wider ‘Surprisingly’ tagline, which aims to challenge perceptions of Skoda by highlighting how its cars are “surprisingly smart, safe and versatile.”
A mid-funnel layer of the campaign will dig deeper into the specifics of Skoda’s electric range, with platforms like Reddit used to reach audiences actively researching EV ownership.
Directed by Aimee-Lee Xu Hsien through production house Rabbit, the launch film debuted across video-on-demand, supported by digital video assets and social content, with Phd handling the media strategy.
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Just a quick observation.
In the first STATIC picture in the article shows the two blokes with a jerry-can and standing in the clearly illuminated garage and vehicle.
By the end of the VIDEO ad, the two blokes look like they were at least 90% in ‘the dark’ as they scoot away.